Sleepover parties don’t often include enough sleep, but the kids love them! They love staying up late, giggling together, and playing sleepover games. Slumber parties should not be co-ed, so keep the guest list to girls only! This slumber party guide is for girls 7 to 10 years old.

For older girls, see our Tween and Teen Slumber Party Guide. For boys, see our Boys Slumber Party Guide.

Ages 4-6 Years Old – For very young girls from four to six years old, I suggest holding a “Pretend Sleepover”. This was a big success when my kids were young. Invite their friends to come over about 7pm in pajamas. Have them bring a sleeping bag and favorite stuffed animal. Unroll the sleeping bags in the family room and let the kids watch a movie, eat popcorn, and play for a couple of hours. Have the parents pick up at 9pm and everyone can sleep at home in their own beds. The children feel very grown-up to be on a “sleepover” but don’t actually spend the night in someone else’s home.

Adult on Duty

When the guests arrive, show everyone where the bathroom is located and where they should sleep. Let the girls know that you will be happy to call their parent to come get them if they want to go home. Be sure you have a phone number for each parent. Always have an adult in the home to supervise the girls. The kids want to be on their own, but you need to check on them every 30 minutes or so. Bringing in snacks or emptying the trash are both good excuses to wander in to the party room.

Ordering the Slumber Party Supplies online will make the shopping chore much easier. It saves time and money to have the party ware and party favors delivered right to your home.

Your invitation should clearly state what time the party starts and when parents should pick up their children the next morning. Include any items you want each girl to bring like a sleeping bag, pillow, and their favorite stuffed animal.

Prepare the room where the girls will sleep by moving some furniture (like the coffee table) against the wall to make room for sleeping bags. Stack some extra pillows and blankets nearby, along with a few flashlights. Plug in a small night light in the hall leading to the bathroom.

The girls will definitely enjoy glow in the dark necklaces and bracelets when it becomes dark outside.

If you’ll be serving food in a separate room, add a centerpiece and streamers in colors to match your party plates, plus a cluster of balloons at one end of the table.

Bunches of helium balloons are all you need sometimes to make a room feel like a party! Purchase some mylar balloons that match your party theme and surround each one with a cluster of the cheaper latex balloons. Tie together 5 or 7 balloons, with the mylar slightly higher than the others. Then anchor the clusters of balloons in the room where the girls will spend the evening.

The girls look forward to playing, talking and giggling together at a slumber party. Sometimes a well-chosen movie and their favorite dolls will keep the girls entertained until bedtime, particularly when there are only a few guests. But you can’t be sure of that, so be prepared with a few of these activities to keep the group focused on fun. Keeping the girls occupied helps prevent power struggles and bickering.

Provide a simple design and the supplies to make friendship bracelets for each other.

Sock Crafts – Supply colored socks and a few supplies to decorate them. Glue fake jewels onto the sock above the ankle. Or turn them into non-skid slipper socks with puffy fabric paint. Just add the paint onto the bottom of each sock in any design and let them dry overnight. This would also be fun using glow in the dark fabric paint.

Bath Salts – Make bath salts to take home with this easy recipe: Let each girl pour one cup of Epsom salts into a quart size zip top bag. Add 2-3 drops of food coloring and a few drops of essential oil to make it smell good. Try lavender, orange, or any oil you think the girls will like. Zip the bag closed and shake until everything is well mixed. Makes enough for one bath.

Soap Making – Purchase blocks of soap and a few soap molds at a craft store. Then find small items that will fit inside the molds (artificial flowers, shells, etc.). At the party, melt the soap blocks and help the girls pour it into the molds. Let them place a shell or flower bloom inside the molds before pouring in the liquid soap. The soap will harden in about 30 minutes, and pop right out of the molds. Put each bar of soap into a plastic bag and send home with the guests.

Stuffed Animal Hunt – Collect some your daughter’s stuffed animals or ask each girl to bring one from home. Put all the animals in a laundry basket and blindfold each girl one by one and ask them to find a specific animal in the pile.

Organize the girls to play Twister or sing along to a karaoke machine.

Pillow Case Ideas –

Provide solid color pillowcases and fabric paint. Let each girl design her own pillow case to take home. These will need to dry overnight.

Autograph Pillow Cases –Provide white or light colored pillow cases for each girl and a package of fabric markers. Let the girls draw pictures and sign each other’s pillow cases.

Movie Trivia – Choose a movie that is suitable for your guests’ age group. Watch the movie a day or two before the party and make up questions about the characters and the plot. For example, use quotes from different scenes and ask which character said it. Or who was wearing ______ during the _____ scene? After the girls have watched the movie, hand out the trivia questions and see who can get them all correct.

Movie Suggestions For a girls Slumber Party – Ask your daughter for ideas or let her pick from this list of kid-friendly movies:

High School Musical – any of the three movies are acceptable.

Samantha, Felicity, Molly or any other American Girl movies.

Night at the Museum

Camp Rock

Madagascar

Kung Fu Panda

Enchanted

The Princess Diaries

The Parent Trap – remake starring a young Lindsay Lohan.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – avoid all other Harry Potter movies since they get scarier and some are rated PG-13.

You want to provide a steady stream of snacks during the sleepover. This also provides you with an excellent reason to wander into the party room every so often to check what’s going on. Start with heavier food like pizza and bring lighter snacks later on. Here are some suggestions:

Pizza

Chips and dip

Rice Crispy treats

S’Mores – bring the girls into the kitchen to make their own.

Ice Cream Sundaes

Popcorn

Hot, soft pretzels

Brownies

Cookies

Non-caffeine sodas like sprite and root beer plus mini water bottles.

If this is a birthday celebration, you will also want a cake!

Breakfast the Next Morning:

Girls this age seem to love bagels and flavored cream cheese. You could also serve waffles or pancakes, plus sliced fruit like strawberries, bananas, and apples. Be sure to have whipped cream as a treat to put on the waffles or pancakes. For drinks offer milk, hot chocolate and juice.

You only need to hand out favors if the sleepover is a birthday party. Plus, any craft the girls make during the sleepover can double as a party favor. Take the work out of planning the favor bags by ordering complete Favor Sets. Or choose one larger item to give each girl as their favor, like a Sleepover Doll.